More political parties, individuals withdraw from Iraqi elections
13/1/2005 14:53
Due to the grim security situation in Iraq, more political parties and
individuals have withdrawn from the landmark elections due on Jan.
30.
According to the Al Furat newspaper, 53 political parties and
organizations as well as 30 individuals have asked their names to be dropped
from the election lists in a bid to show their rejection of elections under US
occupation.
A Sunni tribal coalition, the Patriotic Front for Iraqi Tribes,
said on Wednesday that it would withdraw from the elections unless it is
postponed till the day when security improves.
The coalition said the
announcement was also in protest against the US detention of the alliance's
leader Hassan Zeidan Khalaf al- Lihebi.
The alliance is the latest major
Sunni group that challenged the Iraqi authority which had refused to postpone
the elections.
The Iraqi Islamic Party, the biggest Sunni party, had earlier
announced its withdrawal, saying the deteriorating situation prevents voters
from voting and even getting full knowledge of the candidates.
Observers
claim that more withdrawals are expected due to disputes on the elections among
various political groups and individuals.
However, the United States and the
interim Iraqi government rule out the possibility of postponing the
poll.
Delaying Iraq's elections beyond Jan. 30 would give insurgents a
tactical victory and provide no guarantee that security would improve, said
White House spokesman Scott McClellan.
"We want to make sure that there is as
broad participation as possible in those elections. I think we all recognize
that the election is not going to be perfect," he added.
Fareed Ayar,
spokesman of Iraq's Independent Electoral Commission, told Xinhua on Tuesday:
"It is a matter of saving Iraq from dipping into a major constitutional crisis
by holding the elections on Jan. 30 as planned."
"The Sunni sect is one of
the major pillars of this country ... and I believe that the Sunnis should play
one of the major roles in the building of this country and I wish they would
take part in writing the constitution after the elections."
Cautioning Sunnis
against becoming losers in a reshuffle like Maronites in Lebanon after they
boycotted the elections in 1990, Ayar said he hopes Sunnis would not be left in
the cold in the aftermath of a widespread withdrawal from the elections.
Xinhua
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